


Dust

by meanderingsoul



Series: Prydonian Misadventures [1]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Butchered References to Shakespeare, Gen, M/M, Pre-Slash, Student Shenanigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-10
Updated: 2015-01-10
Packaged: 2018-03-07 00:58:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3154823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meanderingsoul/pseuds/meanderingsoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's their first day at the Temporal University and they decide their rooms need a change. It doesn't work out as intended.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dust

The walk to the Time Academy was silent. Their new Headmaster Borusa walked in front of the procession, holding up a lamp solemnly in the russet darkness before the dawn of their largest sun. Single file and in step behind him were those who might one day be Time Lords. This new group of Potentials were feeling the weight of their Chapter colors for the first time, House crests sewn heavily over their left hearts. At twenty years of age, one decade of Gallifreyan life per heart, and twelve years after witnessing the Untempered Schism they were finally deemed mature enough children to represent the ancient bloodlines of Time Lords that had loomed them.

Two Prydonians at the very back of the procession didn’t seem to share their classmate’s feelings. One was barefoot and sleepy-eyed and the other looked distinctly apathetic. The ornate, copper door to the Temporal University loomed ahead in the silent streets of the Citadel. The dome above them gleamed. Many city residents had come to watch the approach, but no one spoke. This walk had taken place every six years for generations.

“Once we walk through that door so much is going to change,” Koschei murmured, shoving the jagged ends of his black hair away from his eyes. It fell to just above his shoulders since Theta had absentmindedly trimmed it with a spare saw blade during their Basic Mechanical Repair class five years ago. His robes were pristine, the Oakdown crest perfectly straight over his left heart. He was carrying Theta Sigma’s shoes and walking just behind him, closer together than the others.

“Change can be good, variety and all. Maybe the next forty or so years won’t be as dull as the last twelve in the Basics Academies and we won’t have to be in trouble all the time just trying to stay sane?”

“We’ll still be in trouble all the time Theta.”

“I know.”

Time seemed to lengthen as the tower of their world’s greatest center of learning loomed in the distance, though they could sense it ticking by at the same steady speed. There was a satchel over each of their right shoulders containing everything they owned, everything of the last twelve years of their lives in the Basic Academy. It had chafed at them, learning only what they were told to learn and having little freedom within their already constricted existence. They had waited impatiently for the day they’d finally reach twenty and leave for something new.

“We’re not going to change though, are we Koschei?”

Theta’s voice is solemn for once, and he won’t meet Koschei’s eyes. He’s staring up at something the other boy can’t see, as if staring far past the world around them. Koschei wonders what they'll both become, what time will do to the light Theta seems to carry. But he says none of this and tucks it away behind a door in his mind. 

Instead Koschei reaches out for Theta’s hand and silently laces their fingers, pressing the skin of their palms together tight, the equivalent of a particularly racy kiss to their teachers and an indecent gesture for an unpaired child. To them it was a vow, one made years ago from a child's gesture of love and comfort. They weren't a game or an alliance, weren't temporary. The folds of their new robes hid their hands from view.

Theta looked down at their hands between them, then grinned at Koschei brightly. He squeezed their hands and they filed through the massive doors side by side.

Behind the door the room was far too big for the building. The hexagonal entrance hall for the Time Academy was many floors tall, towering over their suddenly insignificant selves. The walls were unadorned except for the carvings. Towering abstracted images of the six Founding Lords seemed to lean out from the wall in places, a foot or knee or the curve of a jaw, before smoothing back into a two dimensional image. The featureless faces bent together towards the apex of the hall and looked down upon those who would continue the future they created.

The Epics of Rassilon’s Journeys in the now familiar circular formal script were etched into the plain red-brown rock almost everything, everywhere was made of. The hall echoed with the rhythmic footsteps of the procession and the layers of circular pathways above them that were sparsely occupied and ringed with countless doors. There were six sets of stairs, one per wall, leading to the next level then the next and the next before the linear paths met and began to divide again and again as if a lattice inside a bone. The new students proceeded to them in orderly rows by Chapter, so some instruction had likely been provided while Theta had stopped to watch the great doors close. The last two had again lagged behind.

Theta dropped his satchel to the ground with a hollow thud, spreading his arms out and tipping his head back to better take in the majesty of the room.

“The Founding Lord of the Patrexian Chapter designed this room.” Koschei had whispered but his voice still echoed. He walked over and reverently touched the symbolic foot of Rassilon.

“I know,” Theta said almost dreamily, “He carved his name into the ceiling.”

Koschei looked up. At the epicenter of where the curved heads of their founders bent together was a small carving of a name. He breathed in deep, as if to taste and hold all the power and potential this place held. His heartbeats raced loud in his ears.

Theta had picked up his bag and begun to hop restlessly, curls bouncing along in a rather ridiculous manner. The moment was apparently over.

“Let’s go then.” 

Koschei tugged Theta back towards the correct staircase by his satchel strap a moment later.

*

Up the stairs there was chaos. Not nearly as bad as their chaos, but still the most they’d ever seen other people create. 

New students like themselves wandered lost in the hallways, looking for a door with a name, hopefully theirs. It seemed to be sorted by perhaps Chapter but definitely not House. There were individuals in the colors of every Chapter in the halls. Older students were doing nothing to help, and seemed to make sure to wander right in the way. The Headmaster seemed to have disappeared entirely, which was probably for the best. 

Against one wall right in the middle of everything, a small group of students in their Chapter robes sat or lay on the floor around another who was balancing on one foot on a chair while juggling three plates _with his mind_. One looked up, green eyes looking them up and down disdainfully from under thick bangs. He absently tossed a plate into the air and they watched in amazement as it was caught and added to the circle. The student on the chair seemed focused but not strained. That kind of strong telekinesis was very, very rare in their species. Koschei felt envious. He nor Theta had any aptitude.

“Would you stop staring and leave? You’re so young you might actually still be growing. It’s disgusting.” The green eyed student had a surprisingly deep and booming voice, and from the strength of the mental nudge that had been aimed at them must be near twenty years older than them. 

Startled and slightly overwhelmed, Theta and Koschei for once did exactly as they were told. 

* 

It had been twenty eight minutes now and they were no closer to finding either of their rooms. Theta had begun muttering something about it resembling a minotaur labyrinth on Earth, but Theta was forever spouting these little pieces of useless Terran information, so Koschei didn‘t really listen. 

There were two hallways on this floor that seemed to only incidentally intersect. Knowing Patrexians, the entire building was laid out as a mathematical proof but that didn't make it easier to navigate. The outer hallway was narrow and only contained lattices of stairs and rows of windows. Peering up one of the stairs had led to only the chaos of Dromian students and another had seemed to be offices with no students at all. It was a seemingly impossible feat of design until one remembered that the entire building interior was dimensionally transcendental relative to the rest of the exterior relative to the Citadel and nothing had to make sense. 

They’d almost forgotten about actually finding their rooms when an arm blocked their path so suddenly Theta tripped into Koschei’s back when he stopped mid step. The arm was attached to someone taller than they were and quite obviously older. His psionic signature was near null, just as maturity dictated was proper in close quarters. He was in conversation with another student, a girl who seemed to be in their year and Chapter. The crest of the House of Arpexia was on her uniform. 

She was very small for a loomling. Odd variances in size were most often edited away in the loom. Koschei had assumed her hair braided along the crown of her head was simply a very pale blonde, but Theta’s tapping fingers on his back and the accompanying flare of intrigue he sent made him look again to realize her hair had gone white. What was someone their age doing with white hair like a Gallifyen nearing the end of their time or a Time Lord lingering in a regeneration far too long? The conversation appeared to end when she nodded abruptly and turned away. They only got a glimpse of a narrow face, amber skin, and cold black eyes. 

She ignored them entirely, walking down the corridor and through a door near the end of the visible curve. 

A sudden voice made them jump. “Names?” 

The owner of the sudden arm and voice had brown eyes and odd, smoke colored hair as if he’d set it on fire recently. With his age, he might receive the Imprimatur soon, and was most likely fulfilling the extra requirements to qualify for personal Tardis possession. 

“I’m Celst, representative of the students of the Prydonian Chapter and of House Stillhaven. What are your names?” 

When they remained in disconcerted silence instead of answering the very simple question he sighed and ran a gloved hand through his odd hair. “They told me I was probably getting the most promising Potentials out of the entire group. Haven’t noticed anything so far.” 

“We’re Koschei…” 

“…and Theta Sigma.” 

“Ah, yes. Good. Just keep walking this levels inner hexagonal corridor. Look at the doors this time instead of this fine example of universal entropy. You’ll get a sense for the stairs soon enough.” With that he walked away. 

Theta and Koschei left most of the chaos behind them the further they walked. Every step led them into a more familiar hush. There were far fewer students here, some with satchels and harried auras like them and some walking along with far more familiarity. The hallway looked strange in the distance ahead, proving to their eyes that the path was very large compared to the circumference of the tower seen outside. 

“I can’t believe it.” 

“Believe what?” Koschei asked, stopping to stare back at Theta who had frozen still in the middle of the hallway, brown eyes staring blankly ahead and a few blond curls slipping free of their tie. 

“Didn’t you hear what he said? Most promising! I’ve done my best to be slightly below average in everything!” 

“Don’t be so conceited. They might not have been talking about you.” 

Theta gave him a look. Right then. 

“Well, not just you. I guess they know you’re lying. Theta, you could have perfect marks in almost everything without really trying! It’s got to show through a little. You’re probably one of the smartest people in this room.” 

“But we’re not in a room. This is a hallway. I’m feeling smarter by the second ‘Schei.” 

Koschei rolled his eyes. That was typical Theta, annoy, ignore, and confuse his way out of any conversation he didn’t want to have. It was sad how frequently it worked. 

“Well let’s find our rooms so we can get them disturbed enough to sleep in,” Koschei drawled, speaking slowly as if to a child under eight, tugging Theta with him by the front of his robes while he checked the doors and Theta marveled at the unbelievably plain ceiling. Finally, tucked behind a staircase were two rooms side by side labeled Theta Sigma of Lungbarrow and Koschei of Oakdown. 

“Oh good! They did get my message about us needing rooms together!” Theta beamed as he cupped the label between his hands so it could become the needed key. 

Koschei did the same but glared at Theta’s glee. “Theta you wrote that message with Lithium explosives on graduation day. No one missed it.” Koschei only wondered why their new instructors had complied. 

“So here we are! Home for forty or so years if we both get lucky. And we do have a tendency to be lucky so…” 

They both opened their doors and stepped inside. The stone walls were the same color they were used to, but such a different view out of their windows. Though they’d walked in at ground level and only traveled upward one level to their perspective, they were now looking out among the tall spires of the Citadel to where the suns rose in the morning. The curves of the dome gleamed faintly and the towers of copper and stone cast long shadows across the layers of pathways and roads below them. Beautiful. 

Theta dropped his bag on the bed nook built out of the wall and began to dig through it, throwing new robes and under-robes and unworn shoes randomly over his shoulder so that the room would begin to look a little more normal. He felt Koschei come to stand in the open door and ignored him for another moment, liking the silence in the air except for Koschei’s quiet mental presence in the back of his mind. Everything was how it should be. 

“Are you going to sleep here tonight?” Theta knew he didn’t need to ask. They hadn’t slept apart without having had a major fight since the first night they'd shared a bed. The night of their eighth year. As expected, Koschei didn’t deign to grace his question with a verbal answer. 

“There’s only a wall between us now instead of a hallway. How annoying.” 

“You don’t like being closer?” Theta pretended hurt, turning around to pout at Koschei. 

“You’re impossible when you’re like that. You know that’s not what I meant.” 

“Think how boring I’d be otherwise. Besides, the wall will not be there to vex us for much longer.” 

Theta pulled his latest creation out of his bag, tossing it to Koschei so he could examine it. Koschei blinked in surprise. “You’re going to vaporize the wall? With a sonic device?” 

“That is my plan!” 

Theta spun around before Koschei could protest, snatching the sonic vaporizer from his hands and sticking it to the wall with a wad of adhesive. 

“O wall, full often hast thou heard my moans, 

For parting my fair Koschei and me! 

My lips have often kissed thy stones, 

Thy stones quarried long ago from Gallifrey.” 

“Whose quote are you decimating now?” Koschei asked, concentrating on not blushing while Theta smirked knowingly at him. 

“Shakespeare. Terran wordsmith. I keep telling you to read him. Absolute genius. I have the books somewhere. You better make sure nothing is against the wall on the other side. It might get vaporized too.” 

Things shifted on the other side of the stone, Koschei now back in his own room. 

“Did you refine it properly? You could vaporize the entire wall on every level, not just our segment! You must also suspect this building is dimensionally transcendent, you could collapse the whole thing!” Koschei was shouting as quietly as possible, but there didn’t seem to be much traffic outside of their rooms. Soon to be room. 

“Relax It’s perfectly safe. I refined it! It will just get this wall. Poof! Split into atoms. And here we go!” 

Theta pressed the switch to activate the sonic vaporizer. There was a low whine…and the wall exploded. 

A moment later the dust began to settle to the floor and Koschei and Theta stared at each other through the new gap, wide-eyed, both covered in reddish dust from the stone. 

“You! You said you refined it!” 

“I did! I swear! It did only get that wall. It must have been set at particulate instead of atomic, a wire must have been crossed somewhere. I can probably fix it…” 

“Well we’re not using it again! How are we going to clean this up? I am never going to let you use one of your sonic machines again without you showing me it actually works! And to think a few minutes ago I said you were intelligent!” 

A deceptively polite cough from Theta’s doorway cut off his retort. They both turned to see the formerly white-haired girl from earlier standing with her arms crossed and covered head to toe with the reddish dust. The blast pattern extended around her and into the hallway. Oops. 

“What the hell do you two Other-fucking idiots think you’re doing?" 

Unfortunately that’s how they met Ushas. 

**Author's Note:**

> This is a rewrite of a series I started posting on a different site almost eight years ago (yikes!!) if it happened to sound familiar. I have enough written to update the next four Saturdays for certain. After that posting will likely slow down. The series should stay Teen rated for the most part, and will involve Ushas, the Deca, and a problematic cat. 
> 
> Thanks for reading.


End file.
